WIP Survey

Before looking at this weeks WIPs, go enter my blogiversary contest, if you haven’t already! And take a look at the links in people’s comments. As a community we have knit some very cool things this past year.

There are some former WIPs that are WIPs no longer. I’ve finished the Spaced Check Socks for my friend Nancy, and they await their FO post. Earlier in the summer I showed a circular lump of stockinette Lamb’s Pride Bulky in Fuchsia for a felted bag. It was not to be. Instead it will become a new felted bag with a couple other colors. I have to get the pattern (and the other colors), but it has mosaic knitting and looks really cool. The yarn is psyched too. Details to come.

As for WIPs that I knit on this week, the Minimalist Cardi has a back (folded in the back of the photo) and a goodly portion of sleeve. I love it when I start collecting a stack of sweater pieces. Perhaps that is why I like to knit sweaters in pieces, although it helps that I don’t mind seaming. All the dead leaves in the photo come from our neighbor’s sugar maple which does not like the arid, rainless California Central Valley summer. It always just gives up around this time of year.

In addition to finishing the Spaced Check Socks from More Sensational Knitted Socks, I worked on another sock from that book that I had started when I first got the book (May?), which uses the pennant stitch. The yarn is Sundara’s sock yarn in Lenten Rose, and it is hard to photograph the knit-purl pattern, but try to visualize little pennant shaped purls all lined up in columns down the leg.

As for two other old sock WIPs, I am having difficulties. The blue-striped sock is very boring to knit in the rib, and I can’t seem to make myself knit the second. I am hoping that when the weather turns cool enough to wear the socks, I’ll be spurred on to finish. I like the different blues (Regia Cotton Surf in Pacific).

The aquamarine cable rib sock (mmmm…Black Bunny Fibers!), is too stretched out on my leg to make me happy, and I don’t like the beaded rib between the cables AT ALL. But I love the uneven, “archaic” cables (BW V1). What’s a knitter to do? Swatch! As I wasn’t worried about gauge yet but just wanted to play with cables, I used some Nature Spun Sport in natural for my swatching so my swatch would look all professional-like (I did the first swatch with leftover Chocolate Cherry sock yarn and couldn’t really make out what I was doing).

The double cable on the left and I are having a wonderful little affair (I made the cables up!). We’re just deciding what other stitchy elements the cable would like in its sock. It’s rather particular. I am hoping that by the time I get the Pennant Stitch Socks done, the cable and I will be ready for the BBF Aquamarine yarn. We’re pretty excited.

I hope your knitting is exciting you!